Review Summary: Why did they do this?
I don't know where to begin… (buh dum tss)
Canada’s favorite Christian alternative metal outfit
Thousand Foot Krutch are “back” with a special edition of their 2012 independent album, The End is Where We Begin, stock full of features from butt rock bands I’ve never heard of, and some prominent names from the hard rock world, though most fall flat.
The biggest issue with this reissue, remix, “reignited” album: the vocals are way too loud. And whoever decided to have both TFK’s Trevor McNevan and whoever he’s duetting with at full volume during these choruses needs a good talking to. It’s just glaringly obvious how much better a singer Trevor was 12 years ago than these people are now, not to mention how soulless and robotic so many of these features sound.
Sixx:A.M.’s James Michael must’ve heard “We Are” for the first time 5 minutes before recording his abominable contribution.
Icon for Hire’s Ariel Bloomer and Adam Gontier (previously of
Three Days Grace) were done ZERO favors by whoever mixed these new versions. Please listen to Adam’s intro in “Let the Sparks Fly” to hear how NOT to mix vocals, I almost feel bad for the guy.
A quick break from the negativity, the instrumental remixes are surprisingly solid. I have a long streak of hating re-recorded records from my favorite middle/high school bands, but from what I can tell, the bass guitar got the biggest overhauling (WAY too loud in “Down” though, holy hell). Every instrumental is appropriately aggressive and clear, which I appreciate. The reignited versions of “Be Somebody,” title track, and “War of Change” are the least offensive tracks here, thank God. Respectable features and harmonies from
Citizen Soldier,
the Funeral Portrait, and
Adelitas Way fit the vibes of the songs (but still weirdly loud at times). Not to mention, they finally took out all the long silences after songs littered across the original 2012 record. To say this version of the album had potential may be a stretch since fans have been wanting new material since 2016’s disappointing Exhale, but they had something cooking before they decided to add the rest of these features.
“I Get Wicked” was silly in 2012 and gets even sillier in 2024 with
Red’s Michael Barnes added his scruffy growls to an already goofy chorus. And oh boy, “Courtesy Call” featuring RONNIE WOOD (??) and SVRCINA is so awkward. Ronnie’s little licks mixed with nu-metal riffs (believe it or not) don’t work, who gave this the green light?
New Medicine’s Jake Scherer’s rapping on “Down” works far better than his Tik-Tok Elder Emo singing voice, but by the end, it becomes less than offensive. Eva Marie’s verse in “All I Need to Know” makes the track sound a little more like a Bethel Church anthem than an acoustic ukulele song should, and
Art of Dying’s Jonny Hetherington helps end this record off with some more off-tune first-time-at-karaoke singing on “So Far Gone.” As a kid though, “Fly On the Wall” was one of my favorites, and I’m proud to say this is the best song here. A revamped intro added drums to help build to a chorus that still kicks so much ass, and GREYLEE and UNSECRET’s additions (whoever they are) help add to the grandiose size of this penultimate track.
A strange way to put your name back into the hard rock scene, or to celebrate the 12th anniversary of an album I loved as kid, it’s hard to tell how much time Thousand Foot Krutch really put into this project. 8 years after their last release, I would hope they had more to offer than this.
